Maria Grazia Martino and her contributing authors highlight the different solutions found by European countries with different ecclesiastical law systems, different distributions of Christian denominations and different percentages of Muslim immigrants: Germany, Switzerland, France, Sweden, Italy and Greece. Churches and religious communities are actors... more...

The Jewish Social Contract begins by asking how a traditional Jew can participate politically and socially and in good faith in a modern democratic society, and ends by proposing a broad, inclusive notion of secularity. David Novak takes issue with the view--held by the late philosopher John Rawls and his followers--that citizens of a liberal... more...

Heaven's Gate, a secretive group of celibate "monks" awaiting pickup by a UFO, captured intense public attention in 1997 when its members committed collective suicide. As a way of understanding such perplexing events, many have seen those who join cults as needy, lost souls, unable to think for themselves. more...

The book discusses the transformative role of religion in situations of violent conflict. It considers both the constructive and destructive sides of religious belief and particularly explores ways in which religion(s) may contribute to transforming conflict into peace. more...

Research in the Social Scientific Study of Religion (RSSSR) publishes reports of innovative studies that pertain empirically or theoretically to the scientific study of religion, including spirituality, regardless of their academic discipline or professional orientation. Various articles are presented covering psychological, sociological and cross-cultural... more...

Can religious convictions promote a more moral foreign policy? The contributors to this volume come at the issue from very different perspectives and offer unexpected insights on a question now at the forefront of American foreign policy. more...